The UN Secretariat: A Brief History
Thant Myint-U and Amy Scott
An up-to-date, readable and reliable history of the UN’s civil service—the Secretariat—is long overdue. Thant Myint-U and Amy Scott have provided a concise, cogent and realistic account of this vital part of the system. Their book should also help to dispel some widely accepted misconceptions of this complex and sometimes controversial subject. This is a very considerable public service.
- Sir Brian Urquhart, Former United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Special Political Affairs.
The United Nations Charter designates the Secretariat as a “principal organ” of the UN comprised of a global staff of international civil servants headed by the Secretary-General. In recent years, much debate has centered on the reform of this organ and the way it is managed, a focus certain to continue into the future. Yet debates on this issue tend to lack understanding of the nature of the Secretariat, the reasons behind its failings and the lessons of the past.
The UN Secretariat: A Brief History seeks to provide a concise history of this poorly understood part of the UN system and attempts to reform it. It focuses in particular on the evolution of the Secretariat’s role; its relation to other organs of the UN; the organization of its functions, especially in the political domain; the recruitment and management of staff; senior appointments and the recurring issue of budget crisis. Coinciding with the arrival of a new Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, and following several years of significant political, operational and managerial challenges for the Secretariat, IPA hopes that this book helps to encourage more historically informed and engaged discussions on a UN organ critical to the organization’s success on the ground.